OF GREAT BRITAIN. 41 



little, we rapidly crammed down the throats of our 

 Trout as many small round pebbles as they could 

 bear without bursting. . . . Well, yes, it was very 

 shocking I'm sure, dear reader, you wouldn't 

 have done such a thing! . . . We "won the race," 

 however rather a close thing, by-the-bye, after 

 all and luckily escaped detection on "weighing 

 in," notwithstanding the suspicious abdominal ap- 

 pearances of our fish. " Singular," was the only 

 remark the old gentleman made, " but your Trout 

 seem to be all in roe ! " 



Of course we confessed our shameful imposture 

 after the champagne had been drunk. 



A propos of lady-anglers, I would point out here 

 that fishing especially such fishing as I have been 

 describing is of all field sports that most suited 

 to their strength and physique. On this subject 

 I have observed in the " Badminton Library of 

 Sport," " A woman's figure makes the handling of 

 the gunstock always rather awkward, and the recoil 

 is sometimes apt unless very light charges are 

 used to be dangerous. But to fishing there is 

 no drawback, unless, indeed, it be the petticoats 

 with which some thick-ankled leader of fashion in 

 bygone times has managed to cramp and disfigure 

 one of the prettiest parts of the human form. No 

 skirts will vex the ' tameless ankles ' of our women 

 of the future. Already there is a marked and 

 healthy improvement visible in the length of the 

 dress, and women need no longer draggle about 



